The Voice of Goldman Sachs Bites His LipThe months-long run of negative publicity for Goldman Sachs has had a decided entertainment value. And for that, much of the credit goes to Lucas van Praag, the dapper and combative Goldman PR chief best known for his loquacious put-downs and seething disdain for the reporters who cover his company. But van Praag is removing himself from the spotlight, at least temporarily. As he withdraws into the shadows, so ends an interesting experiment in corporate image-shaping.

Carnegie/Newhouse Legal Reporting FellowshipI am happy to announce that the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University has given me a Carnegie/Newhouse Legal Reporting Fellowship to work on an investigative project regarding conflicts within the New York State judiciary. The results will be published by Judicial Reports.

What Does the Inside of My Brain Look Like?I took part in an interesting experiment at Columbia University School of Medicine in which I was exposed to different brands as I lay inside an fMRI machine. It turns out that I use one set of neural circuits to handle brands I like (Peroni and Liverpool FC) and another for those I hate (Bud Light and Manchester United). Download a PDF hereif you want to see images of my brain.

Punk Is Not Dead, It's Just UnprofitableThis was one of the most enjoyable stories I ever worked on. The assignment: To dissect the economics of hardcore punk. I asked NoMeansNo, Minor Threat's Ian Mackaye, and Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys to detail their finances for me. The results? Combat boots and three-chord riffs will not make you rich.

The Supreme Court Cites ... Er ... Me!File this one under Strange But True: In his concurrence in Baze v. Rees, the Supreme Court's ruling on the use of lethal injection as a death penalty, Justice Stevens cited a story I wrote in 2002 describing the comedy of errors involved in New Jersey's attempt to develop a lethal injection method. Bizarrely, Stevens cites my story in his criticism of lethal injection protocols but concurs with the ruling nonetheless. Read the original story here.

Bad PatchThe story of why Johnson & Johnson launched the Ortho Evra contraceptive patch even though the company had been warned it had a heightened risk of fatal blood clots in those who used it. At least 23 women have died after wearing the patch. Update: The N.Y. Times reports the death count is up to 40.

The $100 Million Sex Pill ScandalSteve Warshak built a massive empire at Berkeley Premium Neutraceuticals based on his little blue pill: Enzyte. Now he may be going to jail for it. Sidebar on the scale of the dietary supplement business, and how Big Pharma is getting in on it,here.)

LA ConfidentialTom Rubin stole $35 million from Sears and Universal Studios. Congress helped him do it. (PDF version here.)

Bad MedicineHow Pfizer acquired a company engaged in a criminal scheme to sell human growth hormone to people who didn't need it -- even though the drug gives healthy people cancer. (PDF version here).

Shades of GreyThe story of the kickback conspiracy at Grey Global Group that took millions from clients such as Procter & Gamble and Brown & Williamson.